“That’s kind of like a full-time person and a half to process these,” he said.

Hakansson held a public discussion during Wednesday’s selectmen’s meeting on the town’s numerous Open Meeting Law complaints and public records requests, in an attempt to find solutions to the time and money lost processing them.

The town has garnered 168 public records requests since January, Hakansson said, and has also been the subject of multiple Open Meeting Law complaints over the past year or so. During a discussion at Wednesday’s board meeting between selectmen and the audience, Hakansson broke the data he collected down even further.

Since January, the budget dedicated to answering 168 public records requests stands at more than $92,000, he said. That’s not an addition to the budget, he said, but money and time town employees could spend doing other things. He also pegged money spent on legal fees responding to Open Meeting Law complaints at $37,278 over the past year and a half.

“I think that that’s staggering. I think that that’s unsustainable,” Hakansson said. “I think that we have to find a solution to this.”

A few solutions were offered – from copying various town officials on requests to posting more documents online – but the meeting slowly devolved into complaints against one person in particular.

Stephen Morgan has filed the most Open Meeting Law complaints and 40 of the public records requests in Ashland, and members of several boards took to the microphone to talk about him.

“I’m here as a member of two committees that have been whacked with Open Meeting Law (complaints) primarily, exclusively, from Mr. Morgan,” Roberta Soolman said. “These complaints have been frivolous …. and incredible time wasters.”

She said one public records request took her over 10 hours to compile, and Morgan never picked it up. Morgan has refuted that case, saying he asked Soolman for something simpler, and didn’t want the large stack of papers she put together.

Board officials and residents said the constant barrage of public records requests and Open Meeting Law complaints is demoralizing, slows board work, and even offends, when people feel their ethics are being called into question. Most board members pointed out that they are volunteers.

“It’s really terrible on morale,” Town Forest Committee Chairwoman Catherine Rooney said. “We’re having trouble recruiting people right now, and the Town Forest Committee is a fun committee.”

Speakers danced around saying Morgan’s name for a while, but eventually identified him.

“He’s virtually stealing money from us,” resident Paul Pehoviak said. “It’s like if you went to church and someone stands up and gives the priest the finger every Sunday.”

Morgan was not at Wednesday’s meeting. He said he told Hakansson he wouldn’t be available until 8:45 p.m. Wednesday, then went home after his commitment ran late, assuming the public record discussion had ended.

He called the discussion “outrageous.”

“I think the whole thing was cooked up,” Morgan said, of Hakansson’s data. “I want to know who created it, when it was created, so I know who lied about it.”

Some people said a few of the requests and complaints have helped them understand Open Meeting Law better, and function better as a board, but others went so far as accusing Morgan of purposely hindering town government by creating busywork.

“It struck me immediately …. these are things that could be dealt with in a more personable way before it goes to the state and we involve lawyers,” Sustainability Committee Co-Chairman Matthew Marshquist said. “I feel there’s a certain amount of …. aggressiveness and mistrust that’s inherent in a complaint. I think it just shuts down the dialog immediately.”

Morgan said he doesn’t think his public records requests are excessive, and he tries to approach boards he feels are violating Open Meeting Law before filing a complaint. He only files complaints when no action is taken, he said. Plus, he added, it’s working to make government run more smoothly.

“Conservation is now putting their documents on their agenda. Look at CPC, they have made the changes that are necessary,” Morgan said, referring to town boards. “They’re all looking for ways to say …. I’m out of touch, or there’s a vendetta, but the reality is (it’s working).”

He’ll keep filing public records requests and Open Meeting Law complaints until Ashland town government fully complies with the laws, he said.

Thursday morning, Morgan requested the minutes of Wednesday's meeting, as well as the documents used during the meeting.

Alison Bosma can be reached at 508-626-3957 or abosma@wickedlocal.com. Find her on Twitter at @AlisonBosma.

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